


Getting The Girl [Boy]

by imanemostan



Category: Bandom, Fall Out Boy, Lana Del Rey - Fandom, Marina And The Diamonds - Fandom, Mindless Self Indulgence, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco, Twenty One Pilots, emo trinity - Fandom
Genre: Emo Trinity, F/F, F/M, FOB, M/M, MCR, P!ATD, Revenge Era Gerard Way, asshole!brendon, kinda inspired by cheesy romance reality comps bc trash, reality competition au, tøp - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2017-02-03
Packaged: 2018-08-28 22:48:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8465914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imanemostan/pseuds/imanemostan
Summary: Five men, put into one house to share together, trying to make Lindsey Ballato fall in love with one of them within one month. But what happens when they fall for each other?Reality Competition AU





	1. Chapter 1

The hostess of the new TV show named Marina smoothed her dress for the tenth time right before the new show went on air for the first time.

She smiled widely at the camera, and audience, once the producer confirmed that they are recording.

"Hey everyone, and welcome to our new reality competition called  _'Getting The Girl,'_ and we hope you stick around to see who wins." Marina internally cringed at the cheesy dialogue that she was scripted with.

"To start off with what's happening, five men will be placed into a house with each other for one month. They will be competing against each other to win the heart of one lucky lady named Lindsey Ballato. We have a video clip of who she is and what she is like."

A woman with jet blacked hair appeared on the large screens by the stage. "Hello! Hi, hey!" She grinned and waved at the camera. "I'm Lindsey Ballato, a bassist from Scotland. I currently live in California with a friend of mine named Jennifer, or Kitty as I like to call her.

"I'm in a band called 'Mindless Self Indulgence' with her. To the men in the competition, I'd like for there to be trust in our relationship. I can easily get like, jealous and angry. But hopefully we have a healthy relationship, like, I'm very accepting, so I want you to be like, accepting too."

She flashed one last smile to the camera. "Good luck, boys!"

Marina and the fake audience full of actors both clapped after the video turned off. "What a sweetheart! One of these guys will be lucky to have her. Now we'll be introducing our first contestant..."

The screen turned on again, with a man that had black hair and a slightly chubby face on the video. "Hey, my name is Gerard Way. I'm a comic book artist and a singer. Cartoons are my everything and I'd love someone who would share the same music taste as me, who's pretty childish at the right moments, and exciting.

"I'm extremely feminine and LGBTQ, so if that's a problem then there's an unlikely chance that I'll stay in this competition." He chuckled. "I grew up in Jersey with my little brother Mikey."

The image changed to another man with a long fringe and glasses to the tip of his nose. "My brother Gerard has always been outgoing yet shy at the same time. Growing up in Jersey made it unsafe for us kids to go outside and play because it was so dangerous. We stayed inside and were very close, still are."

The screen changed again to Gerard hugging Mikey. "Love ya. See you in hopefully a month."

"Love you." 

"Any last words to the audience, Gerard?"

Gerard smirked. "... Hey there Lindsey."

The screen turned to a guy with obviously gelled, combed hair. "Yo, I'm Brendon and I'm from Utah. I'm a singer, drummer, guitarist, bassist, pianist, organist, and more."

"I'm pretty creative and like humor. I'm not afraid to joke around, and I'll basically be your best friend while being your boyfriend."

"I don't really make contact with my family anymore ever since I left Mormonity. I do have a friend back home called Dallon, he's been with me through a lot; I owe it to him."

"I can make music with you, and I'll be a good lover."

"Any last words?"

"Vote Bernie Sanders for president."

"It's a little too late for that..."

"J-just... Vote Bernie Sanders."

The video changed to a new person with a lip and nose ring in all black. "Frank Iero here. From New Jersey, I love New Jersey. Belleville, New Jersey. It's a scary place but it's home. New Jersey... Talk about myself? Not Jersey?"

"Fine. My name's Frank. I'm a guitarist and singer. I love tattoos. What else do I say? Oh yeah, music is... Amazing. It gets me through shit, and I can't live without it–"

The scene abruptly changed to Frank's mom. "Frank has always been a good person. We've always encouraged him to get a girlfriend but he never does, so we made him join this. For some reason, he's never had a girlfriend."

She shrugged. "No idea why. But he's very loving and caring, and funny. You'd be lucky to have him as a boyfriend."

The screen went to Frank and his mom. "Love you." 

"Any last words?"

"No."

-

"Hi, I'm Patrick Stump. I'm from Illinois, and I'm multi-instrumented."

"Oh yeah, fedoras are my everything. Nobody wanted to take a video with me... Okay, they did, but I'm too short so the camera wasn't focusing on me and..."

"Any last words?"

Patrick tipped his fedora. "G'day."

-

"I'm Pete Wentz, a bassist, I can't sing, and I... Don't mention anything about music? Why not?"

"All the others have talked about it? Then I'm not gonna talk about anything at all... I hate ice cream, my brother is Andrew, and I guess that's it?"

"This is my friend Andrew Hurley. Andy, my dude."

"I'm Andy. Uh, Pete's a cool guy, I guess. I'm gonna miss him, that's sad. This speech is so rushed because they're only giving us like, thirty seconds."

"Any last words?"

"Emo is over, you can all go home now."

-

Marina awkwardly smiled soon after the videos ended. "Quite the catches, aren't they?"

"Let's welcome them onto the stage. Gerard Way, Frank Iero, Brendon Urie, Patrick Stump, and Pete Wentz everybody!" 

The five men walked onto the stage. "Now, let's have Lindsey come on!" Lindsey showed up on stage.

"Well, some of you are shorter than I imagined. That's fine, though. I look forward to getting to know you all." 

Brendon leaned towards Gerard. "She obviously doesn't want us to be here."

"I don't wanna be here. I'm gay, this shit is too straight for me."

"Same, except I'm bi." 

Gerard tried not to grin. "I'm gonna try to get booted off first."

"Nice try, I will."

"Wanna make a bet?"

Brendon nods. "Sure thing. You owe me ten by the end of the week if I'm gone."

"What if neither of us two are gone and it's someone else?"

"Then the money doubles over the week." Gerard looked at him, puzzled. "So if we aren't voted off, then the money goes from ten to twenty, if we're still here, thirty, and forty is the most... I can't explain it well, you'll just find out on Sunday when we vote."

"So this is a legit bet?"

"Yep."

"Let's do it."

-

The five men were led to a two story house with three bedrooms. Two beds in one bedroom, three in the other. Lindsey had her own room in the floor below.

There was a small kitchen in the corner of the house, a living room next to it, a coffee table in the middle and two couches behind it; a flat screen on the wall.

A dining room was in the room connected to the kitchen. A large table with three chairs on either side. Stairs above led to the bedrooms, the hallway only had one wall, and was visible to whoever was standing on the bottom floor.

Frank shrugged and looked around the living room. "Nice."

Three people walked into the living room where everyone was. "Hello everyone, I'm Tyler, this is Sarah and Josh."

"We'll be the ones that watch you guys. One of us will be telling you the activity, or date if you will, that you'll be doing, or going on, each day. The others will be looking to see what you're doing and if you should be disqualified. We good?" Sarah asked.

The five nodded. "All good." 

"Great, we'll let you get unpacked. Choose the room you want to sleep in for these next four weeks, and the person, or people, you'll be sharing it with. We'll go and let you have privacy. Have fun."

Gerard turned to find Brendon and was going to ask if he wanted to share a room with him and somebody else, but Pete and Patrick were already heading upstairs with him.

He turned around to Frank. "Looks like we're sharing?" Frank nodded.

"Looks like it." The two walked up the stairs with their luggage.

Gerard opened the last door to a room with two beds next to each other, a white carpet, two dressers on ends of either bed, and a blue wall. "I'll take the bed on the left." Frank said and zipped open his suitcase.

He smiled and covered his bed in a black bedsheet and  _Star Wars_ covers. "Sorry about this." Gerard gestured to the blankets. "I'm a nerd."

"It's cool. I like Star Wars."

"So do I... Well, obviously." Gerard said, getting flustered. "So when we're done, do we just hang out here and wait?"

"I guess we do. What kind of music do you listen to?"

"I like David Bowie. I love David Bowie. Misfits are great, I like Ramones–"

"Ramones? They suck!"

"You're kidding?!" Gerard exclaimed in disbelief.

"Trashy."

"I am offended." Frank rolled his eyes. 

Knocking on the door. "It's Brendon." Brendon said and opened the door. "They want us downstairs."

"Okay."

-

Marina cleared her throat before beginning her sentence. "Welcome back, thanks for sticking around after the break! We have our first challenge for the five boys, their first chance to win over Lindsey's heart. Let's see what's going on!"

-

The five guys were sat on the couches. "We're holding the first challenge. Lindsey will call somebody, and one of you will go on a picnic with a basket full of food, a blanket to sit on, under a tree for an hour. Tomorrow night, she'll call another person. This will go on until Friday. Friday and Saturday is when you all have a break from challenges. Sunday is when someone is kicked off.

"Think of this as a beginner level, and as you go up a level, or a challenge, the challenges get harder and harder. Understand?" Tyler explained.

"Stereotypical reality TV bullshit." Brendon muttered. "What will the rest of us do while we wait?"

"Talk, hang out here, whatever."

Lindsey approached the living room. "Who's going first, Lindsey?"

"... Gerard." Gerard stood up and walked towards Lindsey. "Let's go." She grabbed the basket and blanket. 

The pair went to the tree by the building and unfolded the checkered blanket, then sat on it. The TV crew pointed multiple cameras at them and a microphone hanging right above them.

"Three... Two... Go..."

"You're a musician?"

"Bassist. You?"

"I can play a little guitar, but not live. I suck at it. I do like singing, though. What's your band called, again?"

"We're pretty popular. It's called Mindless Self Indulgence. You in a band?"

"No, but I'd definitely join one. I used to play as the guitarist, but was kicked out because I couldn't play  _Sweet Home Alabama_ on the guitar."

Lindsey laughed at his story. "I'm sure you can find a band that like, won't kick you out."

"I really hope so. But my main goal is to be a comic artist. I love to draw. I always have. Do you draw?"

Lindsey nodded. "If I wasn't an artist, then I never would've gotten into MSI."

"Really? Why is that?"

"It was like, an art show. My friend told some guy who needed a bassist for some band that like, I can play bass. I couldn't. This guy like, came to my art show and gave me the audition after I said I could like, play. So like, I practice and try to learn in one week. I learn a song, and during auditions I'm like, jumping around, and it's boring.

"So I like, drank a Bacardi that I had hidden in my bra, pulled a match from my hair, struck it on my bass, and blew like, fire around the room, the guy, Jimmy, stands up and claps after the room like, goes silent for awhile, and is like,'welcome to the band.'"

Gerard grinned widely. "No shit. That's actually how you got into the band?"

"Yes, that's exactly how I got into the band."

"That must've been a fun experience." Gerard said. 

Lindsey nodded rapidly. "It was."

"Careful, unless you want whiplash."

She giggled. "Shit, I just giggled. God, that was so lame." 

"It's cool." He said, and opened the basket. "There's... Not much in here." He said, lifting a baguette up. "This is so cliché."

"My God, it's even worse than I imagined, there's wine in here too."

"Shall we eat this extremely cheesy meal." Gerard said, holding a cheese wheel in his hand.

Lindsey smirked. "We shall."

-

Frank toyed with the couch. "Are they making us watch their shitty date?"

"Yep. It's straight as fuck by the way, you might want to keep your eyes off the TV."

He looked up at the television and cringed. Gerard and Lindsey were feeding each other baguettes with cheese spread onto the bread.

"I'll be in my room, away from this shit. Call me when they're coming back."

"Sure thing."

-

The camera crew placed Lindsey in front of the building for an interview before the date ended.

"I thought this was a pretty cute date, I really liked the food, and I learned a lot about Gerard." She paused until the camera stopped recording. "That's it?"

"Okay, Gerard, stand where Lindsey is standing. Lindsey, stand where Gerard was waiting."

"I liked the atmosphere. Lindsey's a very friendly person, and she's interesting. Good person to hold a conversation with. Can't wait for the next date." 

"Alright, you guys can head back to the house now."

-

Lindsey and Gerard walked into the house. "We're back!"

"Hey guys." Patrick muttered. 

"Where's Frank?"

"His room. What time is it?"

"Like, seven."

"Neat."

Gerard went upstairs to his and Frank's room. "Hey Frank."

"Was it stressful?"

"Fucking stressful. Didn't like it one bit." Gerard muttered quietly. "Don't wanna speak loudly, just so I won't offend Lindsey."

Frank nodded. "Makes sense." He said. "Can we order pizza?"

"I don't know. You should ask Jenna or something."

"What about Jenna?" Jenna asked, her head poking through the opening of the door. "Can we order pizza? Hell to the no, that's on Friday. Find whatever in the kitchen, as long as it isn't pizza."

Frank shrugged. "Okay then. Want anything?"

"Nah, I just ate." 

"Right. I'll be back in a bit."

-

By ten, Jenna, Tyler, and Josh were calling it a night. "... And when we go to bed, you go to bed."

"What the fuck? I'm not tired." Brendon complained.

"We have bedtimes? I'm not twelve." Pete shouted.

Frank rolled his eyes. "Night everyone. You coming, Gee?"

Gerard blushed at the nickname. "Yeah." He said. "Let's go."

-

Gerard and Frank were in their beds. "Goodnight, Frank." He murmured before falling asleep.

"Night, Gerard."


	2. Chapter 2

"Wake up fine and dandy, rivals!" Tyler shouted, banging two pans together. "It's morning!"

Brendon groaned and walked out of his shared room. "What time is it?" He yawned.

"It is about five AM, contestant!" Brendon turned around to back to his room. 

"Too early, goodnight."

"Wake up–"

Sarah rested her hand on his shoulder. "Let them be, try again at seven." Tyler nodded and set the pans onto the coffee table.

"Sarah, is it just me or does Brendon seem familiar to you?"

She looked relieved. "Thank you! I mentioned it to Josh and he said no. I must've seen him somewhere. Either it was him or a doppelganger. But I do recognize him..."

She compulsively snapped her fingers. "Fuck, I'm pretty sure like, I had some kind of threesome with him and this other dude... Ryden or some shit."

"Oh yeah, he went to that party with these other guys, Jon and Spencer!"

"Fuck, I didn't realize that was him! Do you think that he recognized me?"

"Hopefully not."

"Shit, if that is him, then I need to get out of my sweatpants and into nice clothing." She said and left the room.

-

"Hey, Gerard, wake up." He groaned. "Gerard, wake up."

"Shut the fuck up, Mikes."

"I'm Frank, not 'Mikes.'"

Gerard looked up and turned red. "Fuck, sorry Frank. I'm used to my brother waking me up."

"No biggie. There's breakfast. Come down whenever you want to."

"What time is it?"

"It's ten AM." Frank said.

"Thanks."

Gerard brushed his messy hair and pulled socks onto his feet. He fumbled the railing of the stairs as he went down them. When he walked into the kitchen, the first thing he saw were camera men waiting to record, and eggs, pancakes, and toast on the table, and everyone's plates.

"Why are the camera men here already?"

"That's what I was going to say as soon as you got here. Okay, we're recording not just the dates, but the interactions you have with not only Lindsey, but your rivals. We record the morning, breakfast, you all hanging out, lunch, dinner, and dates."

"Sarah, will you all be recording us in our rooms?"

"We have set up cameras in your rooms, they turn on at random times. We pick the times specific cameras turn on and turn off, and we pick the best footage to add into the episode. Oh, and the first episode airs tonight. Okay? Totally."

"Start recording in five... Four... Three... Two... One..." 

Lindsey opened the kitchen door and sat on a chair. She pulled her dark hair into a ponytail. "Damn girl, it's not even past breakfast and you're already dressed up."

"I always wear these clothes. Get used to it." Sarah cleared her throat and gestured to the camera. 

"You, ah, uh– look great, Lindsey." Gerard complimented.

She smiled. "Thank you, Gerard. You all look nice this morning."

"We're all in our pajamas." Brendon muttered under his breath. Sarah glanced at him, disapprovingly. "What? I can't state facts?"

"We're recording this." Sarah said quietly.

"I could tell. I'm done with my pancakes. You all can go fuck yourselves." 

"Damn, what is he so salty about?"

"It's morning time. He might just be a little mean in the morning." Patrick said.

"How reassuring, Patrick."

"You're welcome." 

-

He looked around the room. "Thank fucking God it's here." 

"What's here?" 

"Oh, hey Gerard. I didn't know if I brought something with me."

"Okay... Frank, they want us downstairs in three, they're making us hang out with Lindsey."

"Didn't we just 'hang out' with her?"

"Everybody left breakfast as soon as she walked into the dining room."

"Now?"

"Yeah, then after an hour we can do whatever."

Josh opened their door. "Hey guys, can you come downstairs with us? I'm sure Gerard's explained it."

"Yeah, let's go." Everyone sat on the couch. 

"Since Brendon is thoughtful and kind, he packed a card game for us to play."

Brendon dropped a box labeled  _Cards Against Humanity_ onto the coffee table. "This will help us build character and learn each others humor, we will discover words we didn't know existed and in the process we will make sex jokes together. We all get ten white cards. Whoever recently pooped goes first, drawing a black card. Everyone else answers with their funniest white card. Got it?"

"Yeah. Gerard, when did you last take a shit?"

"Uh, last night."

"Frank?"

"After breakfast. Wait, an hour ago, then ten minutes after that."

"Patrick?"

"Before I came down here."

"Pick a black card and read it out loud."

"'Donald Trump's first act as president was to outlaw...'"

Brendon quickly put a card face down onto the floor. After that, one by one Lindsey, Gerard, Frank, and Pete each put their cards down. Soon after, Patrick shuffled the cards.

"'Donald Trump's first act as president was to outlaw... Elf cum, uranus, Harry Potter erotica, and bronies.' I have to go with 'Harry Potter erotica'"

Pete grabbed the black card and drew another black card. "'Billy Mays here for...'" 

"'Billy Mays here for... The clitoris, full frontal nudity, my collection of high-tech sex toys, cocaine in vending machines, a childless marriage.' Who the fuck put down 'my collection of high-tech sex toys?'"

Lindsey took the card. "'Daddy, why is mommy crying?'"

"'Daddy, why is mommy crying? Butt acne, lefty homoerotic propaganda, Moses gargling Jesus's balls while Shiva and the Buddha penetrate his divine hand holes, daddy's belt, Mufasa's death scene.' I'll go with Mufasa's death scene because I relate to it on spiritual levels."

"So edgy, dude." Brendon said. Frank took the black card and drew another one.

"'Blank is a slippery slope that leads to blank... A vibrating cock ring is a slippery slope that leads to Paris Hilton's vagina, Two Girls One Cup is a slippery slope that leads to crying while masturbating, a micropenis is a slippery slope that leads to words, words, words, cousin cuddling is a slippery slope that leads to the dick in my mouth, God is a slippery slope that leads to nuns.' I love the micropenis one, definitely picking that." Brendon smirked and slid the card to his deck. The game carried on.

-

"I can't fucking believe you won, Brendon!"

"Believe it, I'm an expert at it."

Patrick groaned. "Fuck you and your dirty mind and good cards."

"Sure thing baby, when do ya wanna hook up?"

"Whatever. Fuck you."

-

Gerard ran his fingers over the cool surface of the guitar, along the neck and strings, the metal cords. He sighed and grasped the neck. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"Frank! I was looking at y-you, uh, you're guit-guitar... I'm sorry, I'll leave it alone." He raised his arms up.

"No dude, it's fine. I just don't want random people to mess with my guitar. Please ask next time, 'kay?"

Gerard gulped. "Kay." 

Frank turned to Gerard. "Gerard, are you a– never mind."

"Okay. I'm gonna go to the other guys for a bit."

"Cool."

Frank couldn't help but feel left out. It was stupid for him to feel like this, but Gerard had been avoiding him. "Shut the fuck up, Frank. You've only known him for a day. He probably doesn't even like you. He can't be avoiding you if you aren't even friends. Fucking idiot."

-

"No, I'd rather not do anal with my boyfriend." A feminine voice spoke.

"That's the best part of sex! I mean, at least with a guy. If it's with a girl, ew, no."

Gerard almost knocked on the door. "So, who's the worst guy in the competition?"

"Right now, I'm definitely not liking Gerard. He seems like an ass kisser for the most part. Definitely with Lindsey. Like he's actually trying here. He's got the looks, he's got the personality, he's definitely Lindsey's favorite. He'll charm her for sure. He doesn't even talk to anyone, he's a loner, what a freak."

Gerard furrowed his brow. "But the bet...?" He whispered to himself. "Am I really that unlikeable?"

"He's got the looks, he's got the personality, he's definitely Lindsey's favorite. He'll charm her for sure."

"I just said that Patrick."

"So? Doesn't make me as bad as Gerard..."

"Whatever. He's very annoying."

"Yeah, and he's extremely petty too."

Gerard wrapped his arms around himself and turned away, back to his room. 

-

"Okay, here's the script for this scene. You guys will be dissing a certain cast member by the name of Gerard."

"What? Why? I actually like him, he seems cool." Brendon whined. "The only real person in this competition."

"Too bad, we need ratings."

"Damn Sarah, not even the third episode and there's drama!"

"Hey, that's reality TV for ya. We'll be holding up cards saying what you need to say."

"Sarah, do you do anal with your boyfriend?"

"No, I'd rather not do anal. Why are we talking about that?"

"Brendon sit on the bed and drink from this can. Pete, on this chair, and Patrick, you'll be by this window standing."

"That's the best part of sex! I mean, at least with a guy. If it's with a girl, ew, no."

"Three... Two... One, go!" The director said.

Pete chuckled and looked at the cards, then at Brendon. "So, who's the worst guy in the competition?"

Brendon cringed at his line. "Right now, I'm definitely not liking Gerard. He seems like an ass kisser for the most part. Definitely with Lindsey. Like he's actually trying here. He's got the looks, he's got the personality, he's definitely Lindsey's favorite. He'll charm her for sure. He doesn't even talk to anyone, he's a loner, what a freak."

"He's got the looks, he's got the personality, he's definitely Lindsey's favorite. He'll charm her for sure."

"I just said that Patrick."

"So? Doesn't make me as bad as Gerard..."

"Whatever. He's very annoying."

"I can't find any reasons  _to_ like him. He's also extremely boring. His humor during Cards today was fucking bland as shit." 

"I need to vote him off."

"Isn't it Lindsey that picks who goes this week?"

"That's right."

"Brendon, you don't seem disappointed that we can't vote him off."

"We can't vote him off, but we  _can_ convince Lindsey to kick him off somehow."

"But how? He's her favorite."

"One of us can woo her over. Be better. Compliment her, be nice, that shit."

"Would you do it?"

"Fuck no. Patrick will."

"Patrick? Will you?"

"... Okay."

"And... Cut." The director said. "That's all we needed."

-

Tyler and Josh sat in a small office space with multiple screens around them. "Josh, turn on the hallway camera."

"Oh my God, Tyler, Gerard is at Brendon's door. Aren't they recording in there?"

"Yeah, they're recording a scene dissing him. Record this shit!"

"He looks so sad."

"I feel bad for him..."

-

"He's going into his room, follow him, turn on Frank's bedroom and record!"

-

He sniffles and opened the door, and collapsed on his bed. "Hey, Gerard, what's wrong?"

"'I'm such a fucking loser, aren't I?"

"What?! No, you're not."

"Frank, everyone here hates me."

Frank sat next to where Gerard was lying down. "I don't hate you. I think you're a nice guy."

"That's just you. Everyone else hates me; Brendon, Pete, Patrick, maybe even Sarah."

"That's a lie. You know it. Why would they hate you?"

"I'm a fucking kiss up, I try too hard, and I'm a freak, my humor is bland, I'm a loner, I'm petty."

"Who says?"

"Brendon, Patrick, and Pete."

"I'll be right back."

Gerard grabbed his arm. "Don't go. It's not worth it."

"I don't care."

"At least stay with me, I need to feel better." Frank sat back down. 

"You got it." He hugged Gerard. "Fuck those guys."

-

"You got all that footage?" Tyler asked. Josh nodded. "Sarah is hard on the contestants, wow. I feel bad for them."

"Imagine what's gonna happen when they all watch the episode– I wonder what the producers are gonna do."

"Probably mess with the wording when they don't have a script."

"Yeah, I agree." Sarah walked into the office. "What's going on now?"

"Frank is trying to comfort Gerard– awe, Gerard fell asleep. They're so cute togeth... What's your plan for the next date tonight?"

"Lindsey and I haven't made plans yet. But I'll be sure to talk with her about it."

"Okay, good."


	3. Chapter 3

She walked into the camera room. "Are the editors done?"

Tyler rolled his eyes. "Lindsey, they have names."

_"Are the editors done?"_

"They'll be done in maybe an hour. After we finish the second episode we can air the first one and watch it together."

"So we're watching the first episode tonight?"

"Yes, Lindsey; after you come back from your date tonight."

"Is it gonna like, be like, every night we watch a new episode?"

Tyler stared at her like she was an idiot. "Didn't Sarah already explain this to you?"

"Definitely. Just making sure." Tyler nodded and went back to watching the contestants on the screens.

"Who's goin' on the date with me tonight?"

Tyler clicked record on the living room camera. "Haven't you decided already?" She shook her head. "You haven't?! Lindsey, you're going on the date in four hours– you still need to decide who's going and what's happening when you go."

"That's too much work!" Tyler sighed and handed a clipboard to Lindsey. "What's this?"

"A list of all the names of the contestants. Pick a name and brainstorm what's happening on your date."

"Okay!!" She said and sat on the spinning chair next to Tyler. She groaned.

Tyler eyed her. "What now?"

"Can we like, kick this Brandon out of the game already?"

"You mean Brendon?"

"Whatever. Brendon. Can we kick him out?"

"No."

"Fine..."

After about five minutes, Lindsey handed the clipboard back to Tyler. "Here. I've made my decision."

"Who's next?"

"Pete Winters."

"Pete Wentz?"

"God, whatever. Pete Wentz, yeah, he's going on the date with me." 

"Ah, okay."

"Can you help me brainstorm?"

"Uh... I gotta go to the bathroom."

"You could've said no."

"Would you even take no for an answer?"

Lindsey bit her lip. "Uh... I gotta go to the bathroom." She left the room.

"That's my excuse! No fair."

-

Frank nudged a sleeping Gerard whose head was in his lap. "Hey Gerard. Wake up Gerard."

Gerard squinted up at Frank. "Hm?"

"Wake up."

"Why?"

"I'm bored."

Gerard rolled his eyes and pushed himself up. "What do you want?"

"I'm bored."

"Oh well; what are ya going to do?"

"I wanted to play my guitar."

"Okay."

"You wouldn't mind, though, right?"

"No."

Frank smiled. "Thanks," he said, and carefully grasped his guitar by the neck; picking it up gently. He laid it on the bed, and took a rectangle shaped device off of the dresser. He set it on his thigh, and held the guitar upright in his lap. He strummed the instrument and cringed. 

He pressed the on button on the device, and strummed the low E string; then the A, D, G, B, and high E. He plucked the low E and stretched his hand to the bottom of the tuners at the top, then turned it slightly. Frank did the same with A, D, G, B, and high E until each of them were tuned.

"What was that?"

"A guitar tuner."

"Oh. Okay."

Frank smiled at Gerard. "Give me a song you like."

"Bullet With Butterfly Wings."

Frank nodded and started playing. Right after, Gerard started singing along.

When they got to the chorus, Frank turned his head at Gerard and grinned; Gerard turned beet red and kept singing. "Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in the cage, despite all my rage I am still just a rat in the cage." Frank started singing along with Gerard.

At the ending of the song, Gerard and Frank were sitting close together, Gerard's face was near Frank's and his hand on Frank's knee. They stayed in this position for a moment, then Gerard realized how close they were and blushed again.

He pulled his hand from Frank's knee and stood up and away from the bed. "I'm sorry." He said. Frank shrugged.

"You're a good singer."

"Thanks, you are too– and you're fantastic at playing guitar– you're a fantastic guitarist."

Frank smiled. "Hey, thanks." Gerard smiled back and shoved his hands into his jean pockets. 

"So– what do ya wanna do now?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Uh– do you like movies?"

"We've established that."

"Oh- y-yeah. I have um, Rocky Horror, if you'd like to watch it."

"Totally! I like that movie."

"Great! Let's start?" Frank nodded and Gerard inserted a DVD into the player. Frank put his guitar down and laid on his bed. 

"You can sit with me if you want." 

"Oh?"

"If you're cool with it."

"O-oh, I'm cool with it." He chuckled and sat next to Frank, then extended his legs and laid with him. He kept eyeing the distance between him and the younger man. He brought his eyes up to the screen. "I love the entrance of Frank-N-Furter."

"It's very... He has a nice cape..." Frank mumbled. "Oh fuck!" He yelled when Frank-N-Furter removed his cape. "That's an amazing outfit. Not even being sarcastic."

-

When they finished the movie, Lindsey knocked on their door. Frank opened the door. "Hey Lindsey."

"Hi Frank, hey Gerard. You guys have nice singing voices. I came up to tell you guys that a date is coming up, so you both should come downstairs. You'll have dinner while I go on a date with some guy."

Gerard got up from the bed. "Oh, thanks. Uh, yeah, we'll be down in a sec." She smiled and left the door open, and walked downstairs. He looked at Frank and smiled. "Uh, let's go." He said.

-

They went downstairs. Sarah was there informing everyone about what was going on this time. She was in the middle of saying something about what will happen on the date, and that Lindsey will once again choose who's going.

"Hey everybody, nice to see you all again! Most of you, at least."

"Fucking bitch." Brendon muttered.

"Nice to see most of you again. I've decided I'm going with Pete on a date to the mini golf course."

"Generic little bitch."

Tyler glared at Brendon. "Brendon, calm the fuck down."

"Okay, chill."

"Let's go."

-

Gerard and Frank sat together on Frank's bed with plates of fried chicken and macaroni and cheese. "I can't eat any of these." Frank said to Gerard.

"Why not?"

"I'm vegetarian  _and_ lactose intolerant." Frank laughed. 

"Looks like you can't eat anything."

"I'll eat dick."

Gerard clapped. "Nice, nice."

"So you agree; you'll eat a dick."

"No bro, I'm manly, no homo. But I will suck a dick."

Frank nodded. "True, you don't wanna hurt the dick. I know how that feels."

"No, you really don't."

-

He tried whacking the golf ball into a tiny hole, but it landed a few inches by it. The whole room full of the contestants booed. "Fuck you Pete, you can do better than that! Little pussy ass bitch, I'll tell you that."

He walked closer to it and slowly hit it, and it rolled into the hole. "Took you two fucking tries, 'lil bitch!" Brendon continued to scream.

Frank and Gerard came down the stairs to see what was going on. Lindsey and Pete were on the screen, Lindsey whacking the ball into the hole. "Hey, I got a hole-in-one!" She cheered, but Brendon booed again.

"Fuck you Lindsey!"

Gerard gave Frank a look and rolled his eyes, going back up the stairs. "You guys need to chill." Frank said, and followed him.

"No we don't! Fuck you Lindsey, choke on a fucking cock you little dick sucking whore!"

Sarah stifled a laugh and went to the camera room. "Are you hearing Brendon?" She asked Josh.

"No, why?"

"He's cursing Lindsey out just because she's on the screen. It's hilarious. You need to listen."

"No thank you. I heard enough of that. Actually, I can hear him right now. So can Tyler."

"Where's Tyler?"

Tyler raised his hand from a bean bag in the corner of the room. "Hey Sarah."

"Hey, Tyler."

"The editing is finished for the pilot, right?"

"Yeah. We're all set for the next two hours."

"It's all good. Thanks, Ty."

"No problem, Sarah."

-

Lindsey hit the ball and got another hole-in-one. "Man, this is such a fun game!" 

Pete shrugged. "I guess." 

"Hey, don't be so moody."

"Fine." 

"After this course are we finished?"

"Um, no. We still have three more and then we have a food truck."

"Ugh!"

The next hour or so Pete got one hole-in-one. "This is fun!" Lindsey exclaimed, again. "Now for the food truck."

"Finally." He muttered. "What do you want?"

"Number nine." Lindsey said.

"Okay. Hey, we'll have a number seven and number nine."

Pete and Lindsey unwrapped the sandwiches at the picnic table and the cameras turned on again.

"How's your day been?"

"Well, we've been recording all day but it's been alright I guess." Pete said. "You?"

"Good, I've had a nice day." 

"Yup."

It was silent for the next ten minutes and Pete stood up. "We should get back to the house."

"Oh, yeah." 

-

They got back. "The first episode is airing at nine o'clock, which is in fifteen... Fourteen... Pete, Lindsey; thanks for getting here on time; seven, six, five, four, three, two..." Sarah said.

The screen changed to Marina, who was presenting the video clips of each contestant. It switched to Frank and Gerard talking about music. Afterwards, it changed to Brendon and Patrick.

"I don't wanna be here." Brendon said. "I'm already pissed that my boyfriend broke up with me, and now I have to be stuck in a house filled with mostly straight men. I'm - done with this game already."

"You just have to get used to this place. I'm not even used to it and everyone seems nice so far."

"I hope I get out soon." 

"You'll be fine."

The episode had come to an end. Two hours later, Sarah came back with news. "The pilot was successful, if we keep these ratings up, we can go on!"

-

When they were going to bed, Gerard sighed. "Frank."

"Gerard."

"I miss my brother."

"I miss my dogs."

"I guess we both have something we miss."

"Yeah, I guess."

"If it's not too awkward, you can lay here with me." Frank said. 

Gerard blushed and walked to Frank's bed. He laid next to him and wrapped his arm around Frank's waist. "This isn't too weird, is it?"

"Not at all." It was just friendly hugging. Before he could stop himself, Frank lightly kissed the top of Gerard's head. 

It was just a kiss. It was only a kiss. It was only a kiss.

Right?

-

Sarah gasped. "Tyler, tell me you're seeing this and recording it!"

"I am, I am!"


	4. Chapter 4: Part One

_"Women and men, we are the same_  
_But love will always be game_  
_We give and take a little more_  
_Eternal game of tug and war"_

_-Power & Control, Marina and The Diamonds_

Lindsey opened the door to the camera room. She groaned and stomped her foot. Lindsey tapped Sarah's shoulder repeatedly. "What?"

"Why are you guys yelling? You are keeping me up– what the fuck is this?" Her eye caught the screen with Frank cuddling with Gerard. "Why are they– no homo! No homo!" She screeched.

"Linds, be quiet. Don't wake the contestants up." Tyler warned.

She huffed. "Fine. Why are they cuddling? This isn't what–"

"Viewers are gonna love this." Sarah muttered, high fiving Tyler. "Let's encourage this affair and there's gonna be ratings."

"If there's a gay couple, it'll attract LGBTQ audiences, and with a gay couple, it'll also attract the straight, white girls who want gay best friends that are stereotypical, gay, white, and feminine boys!"

"Gay-baiting and girl-baiting!" They high fived again. "Nice."

Lindsey placed her hands on her hips and turned away, storming into her room. She slammed the door and searched through the drawers of her desk. She found a file with the name 'Iero' and opened it, going through papers with his handwriting.

She picked a page up, reading it. She smirked. "Haha. Oh no, Frank."

-

Patrick smiled and waved at Lindsey. "Hey."

She waved back. "Hey Patrick. Come here." He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked up. "When we go on a date this week, wear that fedora. I know you love fedoras; it'll be so adorable if you could wear one to the date!"

"Oh, uh, yeah! Of course."

"Thank you!" She leaned down and kissed his cheek, then skipped away.

Patrick groaned and ran to Brendon. "Brendon, I need to complain about Lindsey." His head popped straight up and he grinned, patting the bed he was sitting on.

"What happened? Did she complain about your height again? Because I will punch a bitch–"

"No, no. All it is, is that she told me to wear a fedora to our date this week."

"Oh? But don't you love fedoras?"

"Hell no, everyone just... Everybody just forces fedoras onto me! Like I have no choice but to wear them because everyone loves them! I'd rather wear a–"

"A fucking snapback."

"No, I'm not a lesbian." Patrick laughed. "I'd rather go... Hat-less. Just for a day."

"Okay, you do you Patty."

"Don't call me that."

"Okay, Patricia. I'll go have a little chat with Lindsey."

Patrick rolled his eyes. Brendon stood up and he pushed his nonexistent sleeves up. Patrick grabbed Brendon's arm and pulled him back. "No, you don't. She's probably busy."

"Busy fucking herself, that's for sure."

"Brendon."

"'I'm Lindsey Ballato and I'm so hot and perfect, and my boobs are as wide as the moon!'"

"Brendon."

"'Ah ha ha ha, I have an eternal, obsessive crush on Gerard Way but I won't be able to fuck him because he's gay! Wah, oh boo hoo!'"

"Brendon!"

Brendon blew a kiss to Lindsey, who was in the doorway with her arms crossed. "Hey bitch." He said and slapped his hand onto his ass. "Uh." He moaned into her ear and walked out of his room.

"Ew." She said out loud. "Shit, that was supposed to be in my head. Oh well. Patrick– you don't wanna wear a fedora?"

"Um, were you there the whole time?"

"No, no. Just the computer room."

"The what?"

"Nevermind. Nothing. You hear nothing."

"She means the room Sarah, Tyler, and Josh use to spy on us, and occasionally she does too." Brendon called from downstairs.

"Fuck you!" Lindsey yelled. "Anyway, you don't have to if you don't want to. Do whatever."

"Really?! Thank you!"

"I mean, it would mean a lot to me if you did, you'd just look amazing. Think about it Patrick." She said, and left the room.

Patrick tilted his head and glanced at Pete under the covers. "Why would it make her happy if I wore a fedora on the date?"

Pete muttered an incoherent response and lifted his head from the bed, covers piled up on top of his head. "She's weird as fuck, how should I know?"

He shrugged. "Whatever. I'm going to the bathroom. Need anything?"

"Nah."

"Suit yourself."

-

Frank opened his eyes after a minute of waking up. He saw black hair in the corner of his eye and peered down. "Gerard?"

He shifted in his sleep and realized what he was doing, and quickly moved away from Frank. "Sorry, Frank. Uh, I'm gonna get up now." He said and stood up. "Here, I'll just..." He bent down to pick up a sock on the floor. "Uh, I'll just go to a–uh– yeah!"

He scrambled to his feet and started to speedwalk out the door. Gerard ran down the stairs and fell onto the couch next to Brendon.

"Gerard– em, sorry but I'd prefer it if you weren't so close to my dick right now."

"Sorry!" He exclaimed and almost got up before Brendon stopped him.

"What happened?"

"So last night when we were going to bed, Frank offered to let me stay in his bed and sleep there... Then he kissed my head, I think. I just woke up in his arms and..."

"Did you like it?"

"I don't... I do... When I woke up, it kinda felt right, it's cheesy but I liked it a lot. I realized what I was doing and ran out of our room before he could reply to me apologizing."

Brendon smiled. "Awe, you poor thing. I'm sorry. But you should probably go to Pete for advice or something, can't help you with this shit."

"Thanks for trying, though."

Brendon raised his eyebrow. "I was trying?"

Gerard ignored his comment and ran to Pete's room. "Pete? Pete!"

"Ugh!" Pete shouted.

"I need some advice."

"Ugh!"

"But–"

"Ugh!"

"Pete–"

"Ugh!"

"You don't want advice from Pete." Patrick informed. "Here, sit with me and talk about this."

Gerard sat on Patrick's bed. "Yeah?"

"Last night Frank um, offered for me to sleep in his bed with him and I kinda did... Then he kissed the top of my head and um... Then just now when I woke up, I realized what happened and left without letting him speak."

Pete shot up. "Woah, no. This can't happen, Gerard. We're competing for a relationship anyway. It's not good for you to do this–"

"I'm not saying anything's gonna happen, just saying what happened."

"Apologize for acting like that. Did he say 'no homo?'"

"Nope."

"Oh, uh... no?"

"Oh man, then he intended it to be homo. But not being homophobic right now dude, I'm bi."

"Good for you? So what do I say?"

"Don't do anything! Just don't bring it up, if you have to, don't talk to him at all!"

"Okay. Are you sure that's really a good idea?"

"Yes!"

Gerard nodded. "Okay..."

-

Lindsey groaned. "I have to?"

"It'll be funny, and along with the gay-bait and girl-bait, we'll totally get so many views for this! It'll be so funny, just don't get into a huge fight."

"Fine. If I have to though, I will kick his ass."

"No– you won't." Lindsey's phone started vibrating.

"Sorry, I gotta take this." She said and her eyes widened after looking at the contact. She left to her room and locked her door, and opened her closet doors and walked into her walk-in closet. "Hey..."

_"You have Frank's info?"_

"Yeah."

_"Okay, good. Could ya get it to me by Saturday?"_

"Yeah."

-

_"You can't have peace without a war."_

_-Power & Control, Marina and The Diamonds_


	5. Part Two

Sarah whistled loudly. "C'mon guys, Lindsey's picking the next guy!" 

"Um, I, Pete Wentz, I have a question. Very, very important." Pete uttered. "Can the people who have already gone on a date with Lindsey this week avoid this dire situation called human interaction?"

Gerard raised his hand. "I second that."

"No, you have to know who's going next."

"Let them do what they want, Lindsey, you little fucking bitch that nobody likes. Go die. Eat shit."

"Brendon, chill." Sarah asserted. "Listen to Lindsey." She held her thumbs up at Lindsey.

"Thank you, Sarah. For my next date–"

Brendon coughed. "She's going on, like, five dates this week– what a slut."

"–I will be choosing Brendon." Brendon and Lindsey visibly cringed.

"God no, you can't! Why?! This is unfair! I don't want to! I would rather have some guy tie me up and go in dry all while pouring milk down my boyfriend's asshole and me dying in the process." 

"Of course you're into that BDSM shit." Lindsey muttered.

"It's better than having sex with your fat ass!" Lindsey stomped her foot and looked to Sarah so she could interrupt with what the date is.

Sarah cringed. "You both will be going to the movies to see a movie of your choice."

"Ooh! I wanna see _La La Land_!" Lindsey commented.

"Ugh, that movie is so boring."

"Have you seen it?"

"No, but only because I've been _trapped_  in this place where everyone is an asshole and crazy."

"You didn't have to enter the competition if you didn't want to!"

Brendon rolled his eyes. "It was a dare from my boyfriend Ryan and my ex Dallon. Why the fuck are they both best friends?!"

" _Infidelity confirmed!_ " Gerard hollered. Lindsey and Brendon's attention both snapped to him and Sarah caught them off guard, pushing them out the door.

"Have fun on your date! Also, security, go with them and the camera men to ensure that they won't rip each other's heads' off."

"On it!" Josh said right away and followed the two out the door.

"Do whatever, I'll call you guys when dinner is ready." Sarah said.

"Okay."

-

Patrick opened Frank's door. "Hey, Frank? I need advice." 

"On what?"

"Lindsey told me to wear a fedora on our date this week. Which fedora?"

"I don't know. The black one?"

"Thanks!"

Gerard looked over to Frank. "What was that about?"

"No idea."

 Patrick left the room to go to Sarah. "Um, please tell me why I said that?"

"To stir up drama in the new episode. Did Frank say a different colour than Gerard?"

"No, Frank's the only one that suggested a colour."

"Go back!"

-

"Hey Gerard, do you like the black one?"

"It looks okay."

"Okay? Is it that bad?" Patrick asked.

"No, I like it."

"Are you sure? Don't you think the brown one is hotter?"

"Uh, well, I don't believe fedoras are really that hot. Sorry."

"You don't like fedoras?"

"Aren't you the one who doesn't like fedoras?"

Tyler came into the room. "Great drama, friends! Can we make this a little saltier? More fire-y comebacks? That'd be great."

"Well..." 

"Your fedoras are shit–" Gerard read off a large card that Tyler was holding up. "And nobody likes them. They always look terrible on you. I hate them– you look worse with them on, if that's possible."

"You're so mean! Why do you have to yell at everyone?! Fuck you, Gerard– did you have these scripted already? Tyler, what the fuck?"

"Repeat that line."

"But–"

" _Repeat that line._ "

"I'm uncomfortable with all the swearing..."

"Repeat."

"You're so mean! Why do you have to yell at everyone?! Fuck you, Gerard. You're so judgemental towards me!"

Gerard opened his mouth to reply, but saw no words on the next card, only dots. He shut his mouth. The next card ordered him to stomp out and downstairs. So he did.

-

"Fuck you! No!" Brendon hollered in the car he was driving. He swerved away from a car that he was about to hit.

"Brendon, you fuckwit! You almost like, got us like, killed by almost crashing into a fucking car. Like, you're so fucking stupid!"

"Shut the fuck up, you bitchwit!"

"That's not a word!"

"Storytime: my near death experience!"

Lindsey facepalmed and shrunk down into her seat. "God, Brendon. Why are you so fucking stupid."

"I'm not stupid."

"Yes, you are. You are impulsive as fuck, you don't even like girls but you entered this competition anyway– are you smoking marijuana?!"

"It's medical."

"You don't like girls. Why did you enter this thing?"

"I'm pansexual. I like girls." He said.

"Why are you so god damn stupid?"

"I can't help it, fuck you."

"Yes you can! Are you even listening to me?"

"No. I just got a little distracted by _focusing on the road._ "

"Whatever. How long will this fucking car ride take?"

"As long as my dick."

"So not much longer, I suppose?"

Brendon abruptly stopped the car, making the two move forward harshly. "What the fuck, Brendon?! You fucking bitch, pull the fuck over!" Brendon pulled the car over.

"What is it _this time?_ "

Lindsey huffed. "Unlock the car." She muttered, her voice hoarse. 

"Wow, you're really giving up on this date. How selfish." He said, pressing the button anyway.

She rolled her eyes and opened the passenger door, stepping onto the sidewalk. "Go to hell." She wiped at her eyes.

"Woah, woah, woah. Are you actually crying?" He asked, unbuckling his seatbelt and climbing over the passenger seat and onto the sidewalk. He tried wrapping his arms around her but settled for putting his hand on her shoulder.

"Is it my bad driving?"

"No, it's your stupid, stupid self. You're selfish and too impulsive. Why did you enter this if you knew you would hate it?"

"I did because I wanted to see how it is. I now see that it's a piece of shit but I'm still in it, the week isn't over."

"But why are you like this? It's annoying. You're annoying."

"I can't help it. It's not like you choose if you have ADHD or not."

"What?"

Brendon chewed his lip. "It's not like you choose if you have ADHD or not."

"Oh. Well it still doesn't change the fact that I'm pissed off at you."

"Well then. I guess you can walk home."

"Weren't we going to see a movie?"

"I don't wanna see a movie." 

Lindsey groaned. "Wow, date wasted."

"Wasted." Brendon said in a low voice. When they got in the car, the camera man stopped Brendon from driving. 

"How was the date?" He asked. 

Lindsey rolled her eyes. "Piece of trash."

"I would not like to do this again. Too straight for me. Please vote me off Lindsey."

"Gladly will."

-

When Brendon and Lindsey came back, they separated immediately on opposite ends of the couch, Gerard, Frank, and Pete filling up the space in between.

Patrick sat on the other couch, Sarah, Tyler, and Josh sat with him. "Okay, second episode airs... Now."

-

Brendon yelped at the scene with Gerard and Frank cuddling in Frank's bed. "When did this– when?!" He screeched even louder when Frank kissed Gerard's head. "Full fucking homo! Full fucking homo!"

Gerard hung his head in shame and ran a hand through his hair. "Was not expecting that." Pete said.

"Was anybody?"

-

By the time Gerard was ready for bed, Frank looked at him like he expected for him to lay with him. "No thanks. Not tonight. You saw their reactions to us already."

Frank looked down and nodded. "Yeah, I guess it was just a one time thing."

"Well, goodnight Frank."

"Night Gerard."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have ADHD too beebo lmao you're not alone

**Author's Note:**

> lindsey keeps saying like in this bc i've watched interviews with her and she says like every other word lmao  
> btw can you guys tell me if there's any mistakes  
> i'm really picky about that shit


End file.
